I have always been fascinated by honey bees - they have such an intricately designed order of life, - their brain soft-ware so complex only God could have created it.
I learned something interesting from a recently watched documentary about honey bees.
An interesting aspect of the bee's life immediately pictured for me a spiritual object lesson.
A bee hive is the center of the bees' life and their life-time workplace - every bee has their own specific job and they know how to do it well. There is the queen who simply lays around laying eggs (pun intended) , the worker bees, who, of course, do all the work ... building the hive, creating the honeycombs, feeding the larvae, keeping the hive temperature just right, finding the nector sources, bringing endless loads back to the hive and communicating to the other bees where to find the best flowers...etc. etc. They work long 12 hour days - "no rest for the weary" is certainly true for the worker bees who wear themselves out in about a month. Some of the worker bees stand guard at the entrance of the hive, their weapons drawn. They are quick to sting to death anyone approaching the hive who does not have the right 'pass', the distinctive scent of their hive.
While the bees have several predators, there is one I wish to focus on here - the Death's-Head Hawk-Moth, aptly named because of the skull mask on its back. This moth has a weakness for honey and the sweet hive-scent wafting through the air entices him to follow it to the source. Finding the hive is the easy part - the hard part is to gain entrance to the honey store without forfeiting his life in the process. Not only does he have to get past those armed guards, but the thousands of workers bees inside the hive would also not think twice to quickly spear to death an unwelcome intruder. But this moth has a fool-proof bag of tricks.
First - there is a distinctive sound made only by a queen bee - and no worker bee will ever argue with a queen bee, she truly is Queen - so this moth learns how to mimic the voice of the queen and the guard bees ignore him as he slips past them into the hive.
Second - he secretes a scent that mimics the scent of the bee colony he wishes to rob, and this 'fake' scent effectively covers his own smell that would alert the bees to danger. He deceives the worker bees into thinking he is one of their own as he enters the hive, ready to gorge himself, sucking the delicious honey out of the honey comb cells.
Third - there is one more thing he must do. Even having squeezed past the guards, even having the right 'scent' to fool the worker bees inside the hive, one more thing could draw unwelcome attention to him - his body is far too large to pass as a worker bee. But, no problem, he dresses in perfect camouflage that blends him into the colours of the hive, making him virtually invisible.
And so he slips in without encountering any resistance and enjoys his gourmet meal in peace. The worker bees notice the honey is disappearing, and it stresses them, but they do not identify the thief in their midst. However, safe as he may be - it is only for a time; he cannot afford to linger over his stolen nectar. His 'fake' scent will quickly wear off and he must escape before his scent-clock 'strikes midnight'. If he does not time his escape correctly, his cover will be blown, and he will be executed without a trial.
I'm sure you already see the spiritual parallel of this Death's-Head Hawk Moth. He is just like Satan, our spiritual enemy who wishes to 'rob' us of the sweet blessings we enjoy in our relationship with the Lord. Sometimes we just get so busy with the things we have to do that we are distracted enough to be deceived by Satan and are 'ignorant of his devices'. -- II Co_2:11
Satan comes in camouflage - transforming himself to appear as 'an angel of light'. He does not come announcing that his intent is to confuse and rob us of blessings. - II Cor. 11:14
He speaks with an enticing voice that soothes us into believing he intends no harm.against us. - John 8:4
Though we see the damage happening - our joy is 'sucked' away, our love is being 'eaten' by fear, our peace 'consumed' by anxiety - yet, we do not recognize the enemy in our midst.
How foolish we are to let down our guard ... but we have help in guarding our 'heart-hive'. If we stay abiding in the Lord, He will protect us from all that would come to harm us.
Remember the limited-time the Death's-Head Hawk Moth has to do his damage? So also Satan - even if we stumble and give him a foothold in our life, we can open our eyes of discernment and blow his cover with the word and power of the Spirit within us. He must then flee for his life! - James 4:7
Just as the Death's-Head Hawk-Moth bears the mark of death on his back, so also Satan bears the mark of death on him, of God's condemnation and the eternal lake of fire. - Romans 16:20,
Rev. 20:10
"But the Lord is faithful, who will establish you and guard you from the evil one."
2Thessalonians 3:3
